A tutor, helping someone earn a GED.

Fixing someone's bicycle.

Pulling weeds from a flower garden.

We all have gifts from God, said Lisa Gill.

It's Gill's job to help people match those gifts to ministries.

“We are outside the church, serving in the community. Not just inside, keeping the good news of Christ to ourselves,” said Gill, 33, of Slippery Rock who has been the director of serving at First United Methodist Church in Butler since 2010.

Gill said she recognizes that most churches do not have someone with her title, which she explains this way: “To connect people to serving in ministry where they get to use their God-given gifts to serve our community and our church. This helps them to grow personally in their faith and to bring others to Christ. They can serve on existing teams, or if they see a need that exists, work with staff to develop a new team to meet those needs.”

Members of the church take a Spiritual Gift Class when they first join that can help them identify their gifts. After that, it's Gill's job to get to know the members and attendees.

This in itself can be a big task because the church's five services at the main church and at the Crossfire location on Route 8 total an average of 1,200 to 1,300 people per weekend.

Gill said more than half of the members have been involved in one of the church's ministries.

And the church has more than 100 ministries, including some that involve the GED program, the bicycle program and the flower garden.

Among the many ministries also are the First Frames Photo Ministry that monthly shares photographs to be used for later services and publications. The Needles and Hooks Ministry knits and crochets shawls for people who are ill or in need of comfort. And the Butler County Prison Ministry writes to people who are incarcerated.

All of the ministries — no matter what the activity — keep Christ at the center.

“The best part of my job is seeing God work through other people and seeing them rise up and experience this and know they have a part in His plan,” she said.

Gill also does the scheduling for the church's Connection Center in the former Knights of Columbus in the city. At least one activity is hosted there every night, ranging from Second Grace, the church's clothing ministry, to a lunch program.

Gill also forms partnerships in the community such as one the church has formed with Emily Brittain and Broad Street elementary schools. Volunteers in that program give individual attention to children like working with flash cards or helping with homework. Gill said she “grows stronger and deeper in my relationship with God” with every experience. But she notes her strong faith stretches back to childhood, when her grandfather was a deacon and her grandmother was a church organist.

Gill graduated from Slippery Rock High School in 1997 and went on to earn a bachelor's in social work from Slippery Rock University.

She earned her master's from the University of Pittsburgh, graduating in 2006 with a dual degree in social work and public administration.

Overlapping her education, Gill worked as a counselor-advocate for the Butler County's Victim Outreach Intervention Center from 2001 to 2006.

In 2006, she started as coordinator of the AmeriCorps program at Slippery Rock University.

“I always wanted to be the director of a nonprofit organization,” she said. “But I like my job better.”

She began work at the church in 2010, and a year later she attended Leadership Butler County.

“I learned about a lot of resources in Butler County, the assets we have here. I also made a lot of connections, and I see what assets we have in the people here,” she said of the program.

Gill, who defines leadership as, “having a vision and imparting that vision to others so it can be accomplished together” selects Jesus as a role model leader.

“I always look at Jesus' life as an example of how he led and related to his disciples, how he interacted with and taught others, and how he always sought guidance from God,” she said.

In her personal reflection, Gill describes herself as a “Wonderer ... searching for more of what I can do, what can be done, and to get the most out of life to give to my family.”

Gill lives with her husband Joe; stepsons Chase, 13, and Nate, 11; and son Ty, 2.

“We go hiking and quad riding as a family. We like to be outdoors,” she said.

“I always look at Jesus’ life as an example of how he led and related to his disciples, how he interacted with and taught others, and how he always sought guidance from God. I also admire current ministry team leads and my fellow staff members for their passion and how they’ve taken action to achieve something they care about so deeply.”<b>Leadership is: </b>“Leadership is “having a vision and imparting that vision to others so it can be accomplished together.”<b>Age: </b>33<b>Address: </b>Slippery Rock<b>Family: </b>Husband Joe; stepsons Chase, 13, and Nate, 11; son Ty, 2<b>Job: </b>Director of serving<b>Company: </b>First United Methodist Church, 200 E. North St.<b>What company does: </b>The United Methodist community offers five worship services at two campuses, downtown at 200 E. North St. and the Crossfire campus, corner of Route 8 North and Mercer Road.<b>Employees: </b>25